


Aftermath

by redth0t13



Category: 28 Days Later (2002)
Genre: Abuse, Abusive Relationships, Apocalypse, F/M, Fires, Her brother's an asshole, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Love at First Sight, Slow Build, Slow Romance, Suicidal Thoughts, Trauma, Vic has no rights period
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-16
Updated: 2020-07-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:13:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24749674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redth0t13/pseuds/redth0t13
Summary: Dany and her brother Vic are forced out of their home and have to move from place to place, barely avoiding the infected at every turn and fearing humans just as much. But when they come across a cottage with other survivors, things begin to take a turn for the better, well, for Dany at least.
Relationships: Jim (28 Days Later)/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

There was a look of apprehension in her eyes as she gazed out along the skyline. Nothing was in sight for miles, and the countryside was peaceful; or, at least, as peaceful as this world would allow. The man hosting her and her brother in his home was wealthy, and the situation she found herself in reminded her of a book she read a few years prior. An exiled princess waiting to be thrown to whoever wanted her so they could get home. 

The sun was nearly at its final position in the sky before it would begin to set, the sky was still blue, but the ground below her had an orange hue. The early stages of evening were setting upon her as did the anxiety that went along with it. Would they be alive the next morning? Or would they wake up as one of Them? 

She longed for the normalcy before the outbreak. She missed her friends dearly, even though she was sure they were all dead. She missed her parents, who she knew for a fact were dead, after all, she watched in horror as her brother mercilessly beat in their heads defending her. She still had no clue why he did that, and she didn’t know what he expected in return.

“Dany.” Her brother called from the doorway. She jumped, startled by his booming voice. Anxiety flooded her mind as she thought of what had heard him other than her. She wasn’t ready to leave the mansion yet. She liked it there, and despite how large it was in comparison to her childhood home, it felt like home to her. Dany turned around to see her brother approaching her, a wide, carefree smile on his face which only managed to worry Dany more. “There you are, I’ve been looking all over for you, Ivan wants to see you.” 

Fear truly struck through her heart. Ivan was the man who let her and her brother seek refuge in his home, and only god knew what he wanted with her. Dany let out a shaky breath, which caused her brother to tilt his head. 

“What’s the matter? I thought you liked Ivan. After all he saved us from this madness.” Her brother commented. Dany shook her head.

“What does he want?” She asked under her breath. Her brother narrowed his eyes.

“It doesn’t matter what he wants. You’re being ungrateful, Dany.” She looked up at him and she saw the same steel glare he’d use even before all of this started. He was trying to guilt her into whatever it was Ivan wanted, but she wouldn’t stand for it. That was the day she would put her foot down.

“I don’t feel comfortable going.” She stated blankly, staring back at him with just as much fire as he had. He pressed his thin lips into an even thinner line (an expression Dany had only seen once in her 19 years of living, and one that she didn’t really want to see again), and began moving closer to her. Despite him being a thin, lanky young man, Dany knew he could do damage and had learned to fear him.

“Ivan took us into his home when we had nowhere left to go, the infected on our tails, and we were starving and dehydrated. We were already too bothersome to help but he helped anyway. He took us into his home, gave us clothes and fed us, made sure we could sleep comfortably and didn’t ask for anything in return-”

“And I found that to be hard to believe! He wasn’t asking for anything because he wanted to make sure you were okay with giving me up!” Dany countered. She watched apprehensively, knowing that she interrupted him. Her eyes immediately snapped to his hands, making sure they remained glued to his side. 

“And he was right to think that way. As long as we get to stay here, I’ll let him do what he wants to you.” He spat. Dany felt tears well up in her eyes, and despite how angry he was, and how horrible his words were, she didn’t want to lose her brother. He was the only person left from her family, the only person left alive that she knew cared about her, even if it was in his own, fucked up way. He turned on his heel, ready to stomp out of the room like he always did when Dany didn’t listen to him, though she was normally on the ground nursing a new bruise on her cheek.  _ This time’s different _ , she thought to herself,  _ he wants me to look perfect for our  _ **_generous_ ** _ Ivan.  _

“Vic, please don’t be mad. Come with me! Don’t let him hurt me!” She begged, her voice finally cracking as sobs wracked her body. He scoffed and turned back around, and in his grey eyes she saw fire. 

“Oh please. Don’t be mad? Your actions could get us kicked out and killed for god’s sake. Dany, I love you, but I wouldn’t be able to forgive you if you messed this up for us.” Vic didn’t hesitate in walking out this time. With the slam of a door, Dany was left sobbing in her room. Vic may hate her for a lifetime after this, but she refused to see Ivan without him. Ivan wouldn’t dare lay a hand on Vic’s baby sister, or at least, when Vic was around. She doubted that was the case when he wasn’t, but she hadn’t been in a situation where she was alone with Ivan. 

This world turned people into monsters, infected or not, and while Dany was naive, she wasn’t stupid. All she wanted was to go home. Even if the mansion felt like home, it wouldn’t if she was relentlessly pursued by the owner. She refused to let that happen to her. Perhaps she’d even leave. She’d go back to her house in the quiet suburbs of London, and she’d see everyone she loved. 

##  2

  
  


As usual, Dany, Vic, and Ivan sat at the dinner table keeping to themselves as they ate. A few people stood around them, and although they couldn’t exactly be considered servants, they certainly were to Dany. They had to work there to live there, and if they argued with or opposed Ivan, they’d be thrown out. 

Dany always felt bad for the people working there. She didn’t want them to have to tend to her every need, nor did she need them to. If it were up to her, she would do all her chores herself and give the servants breaks in place of doing her chores, god knew they needed it. Every night they stood around the table, watching as the trio ate. Dany didn’t know when they got to eat, so she always made sure to set some of her dinner and dessert aside for them. 

However, Dany couldn’t ignore the scolding glares of her host and her brother. She didn’t show up to meet with Ivan. As a matter of fact, a maid had gone into her room only to find her standing on the railing of the balcony. She was sure Ivan had heard of that incident. 

The room was dim, with only the fireplace and candle in the middle of the table serving as a light source. While the infected were attracted to the smell of fire and candles as well as the flickering of the light, they knew they were safe. The walls surrounding the mansion were large enough to keep the infected out. The tension in the room, however, was stifling. Dany felt as if she couldn’t breathe due to the silence that permeated through the dining room. Her brother would often glance between Dany and their host, wondering what might have taken place. 

“I’m sure your brother Victor told you that I wanted to see you today.” Ivan muttered. Dany’s eyes drifted away from her plate and to her host’s bearded face. He seemed less than pleased with her at the moment, and she was bracing for him to throw her and her brother out.

“He didn’t, Ivan, I’m sorry.” She muttered, looking back down at her plate. She could distinctly hear the sound of her brother gasping. She knew that she’d be in pain later, even if it weren’t at the hands of Ivan.

“Dany you know  **damn** well I told you-”

“Victor.” Ivan interrupted in a warning tone. Vic merely shrunk back into his seat, dropping his accusing finger.

“I believe Victor, Dany. He hasn’t disappointed me yet and has given me no reason to believe he’d  **_lie_ ** to me like that.” Ivan stated in a sickeningly sweet tone. Dany continued to stare at her plate, her hands between her knees as she slouched.

“Tell me, then, why did my maid have to tell me you were ready to throw yourself from the balcony? You have a great life here, much better than what it could be. Can you explain to me how I’ve failed you, princess?” There was that word again, the one that made Dany’s skin crawl:  **_princess_ ** . The only person to ever call her that were her parents, and she refused to let this creep call her that. 

“I want to leave.” She stated. Vic’s eyes immediately widened, his mouth gaping open like a fish out of water. She could see the horror and disgust in his eyes, but she wasn’t afraid. His anger was frightening, yes, but no more frightening than what might lay before her if she stayed. However, it was no less frightening than what laid beyond the mansion walls. 

“Not until we’ve finished talking here and until you’ve finished eating.” Ivan countered, not understanding what she meant.

“No, I want to  **_leave_ ** .” She asserted, this time emphasizing what she meant. Ivan’s demeanor immediately changed.

“And what makes you think you can make it out there, little girl? You could barely take care of yourself when you arrived here, and now you want to go back out there?” He asked. Dany nodded, her eyes fixed on the fancy glass that held water. She heard Ivan chuckle, but that wouldn’t deter her. He might have helped Vic and herself, but he was a horrible man. “Stop being ridiculous, Dany. I’ve given you both everything you needed to survive, took you in. I haven’t even asked for anything in return.” He continued, but Dany wasn’t having any of it. She stood, still looking at the table, and walked away with her head down. 

“Well then, now that she’s done throwing a tantrum I suppose we can conti-”

“Get your brat of a sister and get out.” Ivan muttered. Vic furrowed his brow at this, leaning forwards as if he hadn’t heard him right. 

“I beg your pardon?”

“Out! Get out!” Ivan stood, screaming furiously, causing the coward Dany called a brother to scramble. He stumbled over his own feet as he ran, yelling out for his sister in slight fear. While he was afraid then, the fear would soon fade into anger, and Dany would be on the receiving end of that. 

Once he got to her room, he couldn’t help but start shouting.

“You’ve ruined everything Dany! I can’t believe it! I trusted you to do the right thing and make our lives easier, but you couldn’t even do that!” He shouted as he followed her onto the balcony, watching her run her fingers through her pale blonde hair. She was crying and he could tell, he almost took pleasure in it. His fingers crept into the back of her hair, grabbing hold of her locks and forcing her forward.

“Maybe that maid should’ve let you jump. Do you still want to jump? Huh? Cause you won’t make it out there!” Vic said with such venom. Dany feared for her life, yet she felt a sudden sadness overcome her. This was, after all, her brother threatening to kill her, saying that she should have committed suicide, saying that she isn’t strong enough to survive outside of her captor’s walls. She regretted speaking up, to an extent, but she knew she couldn’t go on living there. She struggled in Vic’s grasp, trying to break free of his iron grip, but she couldn’t.

“Please Vic, you’re hurting me.” She cried meekly, her hand reaching behind her to meet his. His hands felt cold and clammy against her own warmth, the stinging on the back of her head began to feel numb the longer he kept her there.

“Hurting you?” He scoffed. “I haven’t even begun, sweet sister. I could do so much worse, and we aren’t even out of the house yet!” He then let go of her, turning away from her shaking form to rush to his room. He had to take what he could from Ivan before he was forced back onto the streets. The infected would swarm them, and he’d leave Dany to die. 

  
  


##  3

  
  


Dany looked over her shoulder at the place she spent the past few months in with a mixture of sadness and relief. She knew that staying there for almost nothing was too good to be true, but it truly began to feel like home. 

In the back of her head though, she wished death upon Ivan, and to an extent, her brother too. She wasn’t sure where she’d end up in the next few days, but deep down she knew anywhere was better than there. Even if it meant she ended up dead.


	2. Chapter 2

In the distance, they could see a vague outline of a cottage. It was quaint, and seemed a little run down, but it would suffice. Dany knew Vic would complain about it the whole time they stayed there, but she would try her best to make it feel like home, and that’s all that mattered. The cottage wasn’t too far away, and Dany could have sworn she saw a car parked in front of it, even if it didn’t have gas.  _ Vic could stay there if he complains too much _ , she giggled at the thought, knowing that Vic would rather die than sleep in a car for the night.

The hills that surrounded them were stunning, and there was a lake not too far from the cottage, shining invitingly in the sunlight. Dany knew she would love living there and she envisioned herself planting a garden and, somehow, leading a somewhat normal life. In her dreams, she saw herself with someone who actually loved her. Not in the way Vic loved her, or even the boys from school, but someone who genuinely loved her. Her heart longed for that simple world she built in her mind. 

It had only been a few weeks since Ivan had kicked them out, and upon seeing the cottage, Dany felt an emotion she hadn’t felt since the beginning of the outbreak: hope. 

“God, we’re not staying there, are we?” Vic asked, disgust lacing his shrill voice as it took Dany out of her thoughts. She looked at him briefly, noticing how he looked down at the cottage with disdain, before returning her gaze to the scenery before her. The breeze swept through the hills, making the long grass sway as if it were a sea of green. The blue skies above her reminded her of a much easier time and she knew that she’d lay in the grass just staring at it for hours when she had down time. 

“We don’t have much of a choice Vic, but you could always take the car if you don’t want to stay in the cottage.” Dany joked as she went ahead of him. He stood there, sputtering, looking for the right words to say. His hands balled into fists, but he wouldn’t hit her, not yet.

“As if I’d sleep in that rusty deathtrap. An infected is probably in there.” Vic wrinkled his nose at the mere thought. Dany smiled as she thought of one of those monsters springing up and taking a chunk out of Vic’s neck, but she knew that wouldn’t be good. Two of those things against only her was a sure way to die. 

“So you’ll stay in the cottage.” Dany stated simply, prancing even further ahead with not a care in the world. Vic trudged along behind her half heartedly with his hand on his backpack strap. In their bags were bottled waters (courtesy of Ivan’s pantry), canned goods (also from Ivan’s pantry), and a small handgun with a limited amount of ammo (from Ivan’s armory). In truth, Vic wasn’t being stingy when he stole from their previous, gracious host. He was scorned, so he stole the most important things from Ivan, things that would be hard to replace, even if he had plenty to begin with. 

Dany was nearly at the door, and Vic could tell she wasn’t worried about the infected. Her hand nearly touched the door handle when he stopped her, wrapping his hand around hers and shaking his head. He immediately rummaged through his bag, grabbing his handgun and making sure it was loaded. He wouldn’t open the door, of course, but if the infected came running out at least  **_he_ ** was prepared. 

The door crept open, yet nothing came out. It was eerily silent, much like any other building in this world, but Dany felt as if there was still something there. She was sure there weren’t infected there, but the cottage looked as if it had been lived in recently. She walked in, ignoring the frantic whispers of her brother. 

“You should at least get your gun out.” Vic stated, but she wouldn’t do that. If people were still living there, she didn’t want to frighten them. 

It was relatively dark inside, and in front of her was a table with an old fashioned sewing machine and what looked like a blanket on it. Against the wall was a wooden cabinet with stacks of food on top of it, and even though it would be a good idea to take some, she knew she would have to convince Vic not to touch it. People clearly lived there, and they would probably be coming back. 

“Go check upstairs.” Vic told her. Dany looked at him with pleading eyes.

“People are still living here, we should go.” She whispered. Vic’s eyes narrowed as he took a step forward. He towered over her, and just like that she was reminded of why she feared him so much. His calm and albeit whiny demeanor had changed to the imposing and threatening one she knew well. She looked down at her feet.

“Fine, I’ll go. Don’t touch anything yet.” She begged as she walked away. Vic watched as she left, then his gaze returned to the canned food. She knew he wouldn’t listen. 

The stairway was rather cramped but she could see the beginning of a room already. It wasn’t too far up, and it seemed rather cozy. She rushed up the stairs, not stopping to think about whether the people were actually gone, so naturally it came as a shock when she saw a man laying in bed. She physically jumped back, startled by his sleeping form. 

Timidly, she went against better judgement and approached him, driven by pure curiosity. He didn’t look like he was infected, but he didn’t look alive either. His skin was pale and he was incredibly thin. The blankets laid across his hips, exposing the bandages that wrapped around his waist. A small spot of blood was visible in the center, but it was no bigger than a coin. The spot looked fresh, meaning that there were other people who still lived there, too. 

She was utterly transfixed by the man, though she couldn’t understand why. His beauty bewitched her and she couldn’t look away. Perhaps it was because he was the only other man remotely close to her age that wasn’t her brother, or maybe it was just because she hadn’t met any other survivors on the way to that cottage and she wasn’t sure if he was real or not. Whatever the reason, she couldn’t look away. If she believed in love at first sight, she would have blamed her fixation on that. 

She desperately tried to stare at something else in the room; the wall, the floor, a desk in the corner, anything. The fear of him waking to see her standing there crept into her mind, though she wanted nothing more than to remain there and get to know him. 

“Selena!” Dany froze. The pang of fear caused her body to feel numb for a brief moment, and she wanted to disappear in a cloud of smoke. Slowly, she turned to face the much younger girl in the doorway. She was only a few inches shorter than her, with long brown hair pulled back into a ponytail. The girl looked like she was a few years younger than her; a preteen instead of an early adult. Her eyes were scrutinizing, but they also showed that she was afraid.

“There’s one more up here!” The girl shouted, also seemingly frozen by fear. Dany fully faced her now, and she put her hands up to show she wasn’t a threat. The two stood silently, staring at each other, making sure the other wouldn’t harm them, but behind the girl was a shadow and stomping. Someone (Dany assumed it was the person the girl referred to, Selena), rushed up the steps, holding Vic by his hair. 

She was rather tall, with short brown hair. In one hand was a machete, and in the other was Vic’s blonde locks. Her eyes flickered between Dany and the man on the bed and her brow furrowed. She threw Vic against the wall and moved in front of the younger girl, pointing her weapon at Dany.

“Get away from him.” She demanded, her voice shaking with anger. Dany backed away from her but only managed to get closer to the bed.

“I said get away from him!” Dany flinched, stepping to the side to get around the woman she assumed was Selena. 

“Please, I don’t know what Vic was doing but we just got here. We didn’t know if anyone was living here.” Dany tried to explain. Selena glared at her, finding her story hard to believe. When she caught Vic, he was rummaging through their things and most of their food was gone. His bag was still downstairs on the table, but he wouldn’t go running just yet. He’d wait until the woman was completely preoccupied with his sister. 

“She was looking at him when I got up here.” The girl commented. Dany’s expression didn’t change. She knew she wasn’t in the wrong, even if Vic was. Her story holds up, she was scoping the place out in hopes that it was empty and she found someone, and she would have been on her way out. The issue was whether or not they believed her.

Dany watched silently as her coward of a brother slinked away into the shadows, he was probably going to leave her there. On one hand, she could let him get away and hope that she could live there with them, away from her abusive brother. On the other, however, she could stop him and hope that they trust her for telling them. She figured the second option was best. 

“Vic, get back here.” She rolled her eyes, speaking through gritted teeth. She sounded tired, almost resigned. She sounded like she was done dealing with her brother, and she hoped that was what their captors thought. Vic’s eyes widened in utter offense. 

“How dare you,” he muttered, his tone angry and almost unstable, “you’re being difficult for no reason, Dany. I would have come back for you… eventually.” Dany’s pleading eyes met Selena’s, and in that moment she understood, though she wouldn’t let the girl go just yet. 

“Keep an eye on her.” Selena ordered as she walked over to Vic, who cowered as usual. 

“Don’t you touch me!” Vic screamed. Behind her, Dany could hear shifting. All the noise was probably waking the man up, and Vic’s shrill protests weren’t helping. She watched as the girl’s eyes widened.

“Jim?” She asked quietly, moving forward slightly, as if she wanted to rush to help him. Dany turned around and was immediately greeted with the sight of his beautiful blue eyes staring up at her in confusion. She felt her heart flutter and she felt the urge to look away. She was acting like a schoolgirl with a crush, but she couldn’t just run away, she couldn’t act like everything was normal, because it wasn’t normal. She was in this man’s house, her brother tried stealing from him and his family, and she was up there staring at him. 

“Um… hello?” He muttered, his voice rough from sleep. Dany looked at the girl again, unsure of how to respond, but neither did the girl as she stood there, smiling awkwardly, waiting for Selena to get back. 

  
  


##  2

  
  


“We were looking for somewhere to stay when we found this place. We were seeing if anyone lived here, or at least I was, and then I saw him. I was going to call for Vic but you showed up.” Dany explained, her eyes fixated on the table the whole time. It wasn’t exactly that she was lying, but she knew fully that Vic intended to steal from them. They didn’t know or understand what Vic was like, they didn’t know what would happen if she intervened, or even told them of his intentions. Earlier, when she stopped him from escaping, he seemed like he was ready to kill her, and his words were manipulative as usual, so she assumed they would understand why she wouldn’t try to stop him alone. 

However, they knew what damage one of them could inflict, they knew that if he heard her screaming he’d likely save her, even if he was wounded. 

“My brother didn’t know you lived here… I’m sure he didn’t mean to take everything without me telling him about you.” She said, locking eyes with Jim once more. This time, though, she seemed less afraid. She was trying to tell him something. 

“Sounds like he didn’t care. Like he was going to leave you here anyway.” Selena stated, causing Dany to look at her with frightened eyes. She knew what she was saying was right. Vic was going to leave her there, and he was going to make sure she had nothing. 

Vic let out a chuckle, an unnerving one that made Dany slouch back in her seat. The other three immediately picked up on this, and they knew their suspicions were correct. His grey eyes never left her form, and he glared as usual. 

“My dear sister got us kicked out of our last home.”

“I know.” Dany muttered, unable to overcome the fear he instilled in her. There were three other people there; two she knew could easily overpower him if need be, if he raised a hand at her, he’d lose that hand. These people seemed decent, like they wouldn’t sit back and watch abuse like Ivan did. However, this wasn’t enough for her to overcome her fears. She wanted to trust them, like she wanted to trust Vic when he said he wouldn’t hurt her anymore, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

“Whatever the reason, you’re here now. I’m sure you’re good people.” Selena said, though her eyes never left Dany. She knew that she wasn’t talking about Vic. Hell, she was sure Vic wouldn’t last a week living in their cottage, under their rules. She then looked up at Jim, then at Hannah, almost as if they were confirming the decision. If the duo were infected, they would have turned by then. There was a basement, and an extra room. Selena knew she wanted to keep an eye on Vic, just to make sure he didn’t take anything and split, and to make sure he didn’t hurt his sister. She’d sleep in the living room for a while, just to watch Dany’s weasel of a brother. 

“I don’t trust him.” She continued, ignoring the glares of Vic as Dany nodded in agreement. Selena stood, walking toward the two but only choosing to talk to the younger of the two. 

“You can stay, but if your brother steps out of line, he’s a dead man.” She explained, her tone serious and low. Dany nodded.

“Thank you so much, I don’t know how to repay you-”

“You won’t have to. Just keep him in line.” Dany’s gaze shifted to her brother, who was still glaring at her. They had no clue how hard that would be for her. 


End file.
